红扑扑

• Pinyin: hóng pū pū
• Hanzi breakdown: 红 = 纟+ 工; 扑 = 手 (hand radical) + 卜 (phonetic) — originally to pat or press; reduplication creates a vivid descriptive effect

Meaning

Rosy-cheeked; flushed red. Describes cheeks or a face that are glowing with a healthy or excited redness.

An expressive reduplication adjective used almost exclusively to describe the cheeks or face of people, especially children, or those who are cold, excited, or exerting themselves. Carries a warm, endearing tone. Rarely used in formal writing.

Examples

1. 孩子们在雪地里追逐嬉戏了一个多小时，回到屋内时一个个脸蛋儿都冻得红扑扑的，透着满满的活力。 After chasing each other around in the snow for more than an hour, the kids came back inside with cheeks flushed bright red from the cold, bursting with energy.
2. 她跑完全程马拉松之后，双颊红扑扑的，呼出的热气在冷空气中久久弥散。 After finishing the full marathon, her cheeks were flushed, and her warm breath hung in the cold air for a long time.
3. 台下的小演员面对着满场观众有些紧张，一张小脸红扑扑的，却依旧努力把台词背得一字不差。 The young performer on stage was a bit nervous facing a full audience; their little face was flushed red, but they still recited every line perfectly.

Usage Guide

Context: description, children, health, emotion, colloquial

Tone: warm

Do Say

• 奶奶见到久别重逢的孙子，激动得双眼含泪，老脸也涨得红扑扑的。(When Grandma saw her grandson after a long separation, she was so moved that her eyes filled with tears and her face flushed a deep rosy red.)
• 这幅年画上的胖娃娃红扑扑的脸蛋儿配上一身大红袄，透出十足的喜庆气息。(The chubby baby on this New Year painting, with its rosy cheeks and a bright-red padded jacket, radiates a thoroughly festive spirit.)

Don't Say

• 红扑扑 to describe objects or non-facial redness — use 鲜红 or 通红 for objects; 红扑扑 is reserved for cheeks or faces of people

Origin & History

红 (red) + 扑扑 (reduplication suffix suggesting a plump, lively quality) — an onomatopoeic-like reduplication emphasising the vivid redness

Cultural Context

Era: Traditional to Modern

Generation: All ages

Social background: Universal